Life without words
by winterzsnowflake72
Summary: What if Harry grew up competently without magic? What if he was mute? What if he didnt have to deal with Vernon? AU


** AN- Ok, heres my first story here! Im still working out the kinks in transporting my story here, and random bits seem to have been left behind, Im trying to fix it all, but if you see something wrong feel free to inform me! Also Im sorry for any spelling/grammer mistakes.  
**

**"hello!"= normal speaking  
'Whats Up?' Signing speaking  
*Hi* Thinking  
****Enjoy!**

* * *

-Beeep!-  
Harry shot up from his bed, his hands sleepily grasping at his alarm clock to turn off its cries. He yawned, running a hand through his messy black hair, before finally cracking open his emerald green eyes. He looked around the room that had been his for the last 16 years. After he had turned 2, his Aunt Petunia had divorced his Uncle, Vernon, and she had moved away with him, and Dudley.  
"Harry? Are you up yet? It's your birthday, come on!" He heard his Aunt call to him. He got up and started getting dressed. It was, after all, his 18th birthday.  
When he finally got downstairs, his family was already seated at the dining room table. They had an old oak table, with curvy lines interlinking all the corners.  
"There you are, sleepy head!" Aunt Petunia said, "Come, sit down, I made your favorite!" Harry smiled at her, and sat down gratefully. He still didn't speak, for he was mute.

'Thank you!' He signed to her. When he was a baby, Vernon had hurt him and destroyed his voice box, which led him to being mute, and coincidently, his Aunt divorcing his uncle. His cousin walked down the stairs a few minutes later, yawning into his hand.  
"Hey mom, Happy Birthday Harry!" He grinned. "Did you manage to get today off work?" He asked Harry curiously. Harry shook his head.  
'Nope! I have to go in for a while, but I will still have this afternoon to celebrate with you guys!' He signed happily to his Aunt and Cousin. Harry had gotten a job at the local Zoo a few years back, when he was a sophomore at his High school. For most people it was dangerous, but Harry had a natural connection with the animals, and they all loved him. His favorite were the snakes, who seemed to almost speak to him, but he shrugged it off. It was probably the wind. Harry glanced at the clock, and his eyes widened. It was 9:15, he had to be at the zoo at 9:20!  
'Ahh! Why didn't you guys wake me up earlier?' He signed frantically to his family, stuffing a piece of toast and running to his shoes. His Aunt walked over to the door opening to the front room, and held a cup of coffee close to herself.  
"You were deep asleep! I tired, but you wouldn't get up!" She told him, her eyes glinting in amusement. Harry simply groaned, and ran towards the door. Turning sharply for a second he waved towards his family.  
'Bye! See you later!' He signed, before opening the door and running outside.

By the time Harry reached the Zoo, it was 9:20. He sighed in relief. He was on time! He quickly walked over to the employee sign in board, and clocked himself in. With that done, he walked over to a door with a sign reading –Employee Lockers-, going inside, he went into the male section, and opened his locker. Inside he had a full body suit, a bottle of cologne, and a random little giraffe plushy. It had been a gift from his old friend, Alex, who would be away this week. He donned the body suit, and walked outside. He signed a few 'hellos' to his fellow workers around him, and grabbed a bucket filled to the brim with raw meat. The Zoo was open at the moment, so he had to go through the Employee halls to get to the feeding areas for the animals. He was feeding the lions first. He could already spot a few others already feeding some tigers, much to the awe of the viewer's just across the large cage.

*Come here guys* He mentally thought to the tigers, not that it did much. Holding up a special stick, one with bells on the end, he tapped it against the cages walls. The tigers, knowing this meant food, trotted closer to him. He grinned at them, and with a gloved hand, he reached into the bucket and grabbed a part of the raw meat and slung it to the tigers. One rather large tiger jumped up and caught the meat, earning a few "wows" from the audience. The tiger growled at the other tigers sniffing at the meat the tiger was guarding, before settling down near some cubs and sharing the meal with its young. Harry simply shook his head in amusement before tapping the stick once again, getting the animals attention, and feeding them once more. That done, he went back to the Employees area, and grabbed another bucket, this time filled with dead mice. He had to feed the Snakes. He always enjoyed this task, and the snakes were always calm, and simply good company. Once he had reached the snakes area, he opened a small hole in the snake habitat, and dropped a few mice into the little food dish sitting below. The snakes slowly slithered towards the mice, eyeing the meal. Suddenly with a loud smack the snake snatched the mouse, gobbling it down in less than a second. Smiling at a few people staring wide eyed at the scene, Harry waved and walked away. Now that he had finished feeding his share of the animals, he had to go back to the employee area to see what else he had to do. He was half way back to the room when another employee ran up to him, calling his name.  
"Harry! Come quick a snake got lose, its cornering a child!" Large panicked eyes stared back at Harry, and he dropped his bucket and ran towards the habitat, grabbing a snake tool on the way. He carefully neared the snake and child. He motioned for another employee to speak to the child, while he dealt with the snake. He would ask questions later, after he had put the snake back where it belonged.


End file.
